Parashat Pinchas

Pinchas 5768/2008

Two riddles from previous parshiot are answered this week.

The first is the matter of the sons of Korach. In the parsha when the rebellion of Korach is recorded and their punishment described, the end of the drama is that 'all the men who appertained to Korach' and 'their households' are swallowed up by the earth. The question remains, what about the sons of Korach?

In this week's parsha we learn that they survived. Commentators explain that they rejected their father's ways at the last moment. In fact, many of the beautiful psalms are ascribed to the Sons of Korach, who apparently survived in order to create some of the most beautiful words in our liturgy.

At the end of the parsha preceding Korach, (Shelach), a mysterious man gathers sticks on the Shabbat - defying the Divine law and rejecting the norms of the community. He is put to death. We don't know who he is until this week's parsha. A second case of children who reject their parent’s evil ways is presented. The five daughters of Zelophchad appeal to Moshe to inherit their father's estate as no sons exist to do so. G'd grants them their request, indicating that they are considered righteous heirs. According to midrash, this is despite the fact that Zelophchad was the previously unnamed Shabbat desecrater.

Two cases of evil fathers with virtuous children illustrate the Torah's view that children will not be punished for the sins of their father.

Pinchas 5767/2007

This week's parsha, Pinchas, contains a number of important episodes that are to affect significantly the course of Jewish history.

The first relates to the character after whom the parsha is named, Pinchas, a descendant of Aharon, a zealot who takes justice into his own hands. This impetuous yet virtuous man receives a strange reward for his zeal: the position of high priest, which is the single most disciplined and restricted position in all of Jewish life, requiring his entire life to be focused on a single day, Yom Kippur, when he conducts the ritual of atoning for the entire people.

The second incident is when the daughters of Zelophchad appeal to Moshe for the right to inherit from their father in the absence of a son to inherit. Their wisdom and virtue were rewarded with a positive response from G'd and the precedent is set that women can inherit.

A third is the announcement that Joshua is to succeed Moshe as leader of the Jewish people and that he will take them into the Land.

In each case, exceptional individuals receive a reward based on what Hashem decides they deserve. In the case of the daughters of Zelophchad, it is exactly what they request. In the other two cases, the specific honour was not requested by the individual. However, their promotions were to positions that were vital for the future of the Jewish people although they were not directly to the liking of the recipients of the honours.